Power team! Hoda Kotb is Savannah Guthrie’s new Today show coanchor following Matt Lauer’s firing. The longtime colleagues made the announcement live on air on Tuesday, January 2.
“Today it’s 2018 and we are kicking off the year right because Hoda is the new coanchor of Today. Let’s give her a round of applause. This has to be the most popular decision NBC News has ever made and I’m so thrilled,” Guthrie, 46, said.
Kotb, 53, chimed in: “I’m pinching myself. I think we should send some medics to my mom. [She] has likely fainted after hearing the open of that show.”
Guthrie called the move “exciting” for the network. “Hoda you are a partner, and a friend and a sister and I’m so happy to be doing this,” she gushed.
.@SavannahGuthrie announces @HodaKotb will be co-anchor of TODAY. #SavannahHodaTODAY pic.twitter.com/B64n2FmCwq
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 2, 2018
Kotb replied: “There is no one I’d rather be sitting next to in 2018 than you.”
As previously reported, it was actually Guthrie and Hotb who revealed Lauer’s termination from the company amid sexual harassment allegations made against him in late November. Lauer released a statement following the news.
“There are no words to express my sorrow and regret for the pain I have caused others by words and actions. To the people I have hurt, I am truly sorry. As I am writing this I realize the depth of the damage and disappointment I have left behind at home and at NBC. Some of what is being said about me is untrue or mischaracterized but there is enough truth in these stories to make me feel embarrassed and ashamed,” he told Us Weekly in a statement. “Repairing the damage will take a lot of time and soul searching and I’m committed to beginning that effort. It is now my full time job. The last two days have forced me to take a very hard look at my own troubling flaws. It’s been humbling. I am blessed to be surrounded by the people I love. I thank them for their patience and grace.”
Kotb’s permanent move won’t interfere with her gig with Kathie Lee Gifford, however. As of now, she will continue to co-host the 10 a.m. hour with her.
